Ken's Dream
by Winter Oak
Summary: Ken's thoughts when Sora's friends set up the Special Stage for her in episode 42. One shot.


Disclaimer: I don't own Kaleido Star.

Author's Notes: Just my little contribution to this section.

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Ken's Dream

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"No, I'm definitely not wearing that," Ken stated flatly as Anna shoved the glaring green costume in his face.

"But... Kennnn!"

Ken turned away from Anna and continued with his duties. Gazing down at his clipboard, Ken checked off the last of the preparations while trying his best to ignore Anna's protests. He wanted the performance to be perfect for Sora. He knew that she had been feeling out of place after returning to Kaleido Stage from Japan and after Leon's accident a few days earlier, Ken was determined to cheer her up. A goofy grin slowly spread across his face at the thought of the purple haired girl. She was going to be so surprised when she sees this.

"Please wear this," Anna begged as she trailed after the stage manager.

"No thank you."

Ken gazed up at the stage from his location in the stands in pride. Everyone had gotten together and put in so much effort in hopes to bring back the old Sora. Though they only had yesterday afternoon and this morning to prepare for the performance, the show that they had put together was already very good. Ken smiled as he watched the small group of performers making last minute preparations. It wasn't only the act that he was pleased about; the entire stage seemed to radiate with warmth and energy. It was truly a special stage. If this couldn't bring the old Sora back, Ken wasn't sure what would.

"But... Kennnn!" Anna wailed once again.

"Rosetta, you gave Sora the invitation to the Kid's Stage, right?" he called to the Diablo performer who was standing on the small, colorful stage. The young girl replied with the affirmative as she paused her demonstration of using the Diablo to Marion and Mia. Ken grinned, feeling excitement bubble over.

"Ken, come on!" Anna cried as she waved the costume around comically.

"I have my own costume," Ken explained. He had chosen the perfect costume for the event. He was sure Sora would like it!

"But the costume I have is perfect! I mean, look at it!"

His wide smile faltered as Ken gave one glance at the horrendously goofy costume. Upon closer inspection, the costume looked even worse than before. The lime green pants were fine, and perhaps even the bright red bowler hat was wearable. However he didn't fancy the multicolored jacket with the ridiculously big, yellow bowtie and the big blue shoes.

"Do I need to wear that?" Ken asked dejectedly as Anna forced the costume into his hands. He felt Anna drape an arm around his shoulders and tried inching away from the strange woman as she tried convincing him into wearing the costume.

"Come on! It'll be fun! I remember that you dressed like a clown for Sora before!" Anna said as she rubbed her chin thoughtfully. Her eyes gleamed in a somewhat evil manner. "This costume isn't even that bad! I'm sure Sora would like it!"

Ken stopped trying to pull away from Anna upon hearing those words. He slowly felt his face heat up as he imagined Sora clinging onto his arm and laughing happily. He didn't even cringe upon imagining himself in the odd outfit.

"D-do you really think so?" Ken asked, gazing hopefully at Anna.

The young woman grinned mischievously as she pulled Ken closer to her.

"Of course. In fact, I'm sure she'll _love _it," the purple haired girl whispered to Ken, sending shivers crawling up his spine.

And that was how he found himself dressed up in the odd green outfit a few minutes later. He was slowly beginning to regret it as he found that everyone else's costumes actually looked normal when compared to his. He considered taking off the costume and putting on the one he had chosen for himself yesterday for the event but gave up on the idea when he noticed that Anna had stolen the bag he had kept his costume in.

Either way, he was determined to remain cheerful and put on a good show for Sora! Ken nodded and straightened the yellow tie on his jacket.

"Hey Ken!"

Ken slowly turned around and to his horror, found Anna once again shoving something into his face. Taking a quick step back, Ken nearly tripped over one of the red seats. Gripping onto the back of a chair, Ken tried not to fall back once again when it was revealed that Anna was holding a giant hairy… thing.

"What do you think?" Anna asked, swinging the object back and forth in between her fingers.

"I… what is it?"

"It's a mustache! Can't you tell?" Anna asked holding the object above her lips. The young woman smiled widely as she leaned forward and held it in front of Ken's face. "Perfect!"

Ken couldn't begin to imagine what she was thinking.

"Hold still while I tape this on," Anna said as she pulled on the duct tape.

"Wait, wait. You're putting this onto my face… with duct tape?!" Ken exclaimed, completely horrified. Before he had any more time to protest, Ken found Anna plastering the "mustache" on his face. Losing all balance, Ken toppled over the back of the chair, and found himself sprawled on the cold cement floor with a "mustache" taped onto his face… with duct tape.

Ken scrunched his nose, adjusting to the feel of the sticky and cold tape on his skin. The hairs of the mustache brushed lightly over his lips as he opened his mouth to protest.

"Sora is going to be very pleased when she sees you," Anna announced, leaning over the chair to look down at Ken.

Ken swallowed his indignant words upon hearing those words.

"D-do you really think so?" Ken questioned, turning into a pile of goop once again. The goofy grin he was wearing earlier quickly returned to his face as Ken imagined Sora admiring his "mustache".

"Oh, and here's your unicycle," Anna added, shoving that into Ken's face as well. Grinning widely, Anna elegantly jumped back onto the stage.

Ken gazed uncertainly at the unicycle in his hands. It had been a while since he had been on a unicycle. Smiling fondly down at the object, Ken remembered performances he had given to his friends on his unicycle. It seemed like forever since his last performance. Furrowing his brow slightly, Ken also remembered attempting to secretly learn how to ride the unicycle in the garage of his house. He remembered the sweat on his hands as he gripped tightly onto the railing of the stairs as he fought to keep balance, the stinging feeling of his elbows and knees from the injuries and the tears when his parents expressed their disapproval of his dream. He had fallen many times but had gotten up again and again. In the end… it didn't matter.

Pushing his thoughts aside, Ken placed the unicycle on the ground and jumped on gracefully, his feet landing firmly on the pedals. Ken grinned, as he pedaled back and forth, maintaining balance with ease.

"Everyone, return to your positions," Ken called from atop the unicycle. "Sora should arrive soon."

As if on cue, the group heard footsteps approaching the stage. Picking up the cane Anna had left him, Ken moved forwards to greet Sora.

"Welcome!" Ken cried cheerfully as he appeared before the girl.

"Ken! Why are you dressed like that?" Sora exclaimed, looking extremely shocked and perhaps a little unnerved. Ken felt himself sweating imagining what Sora was thinking at the moment. All his fantasies of Sora admiring his outfit were flushed down the toilet. Ken made a mental note to never trust Anna's opinion _ever_ again. For a moment, Ken was tempted to start sulking but changed his mind. Forcing a smile onto his face, Ken reminded himself that he had wanted to make Sora happy. Yes, he must continue smiling! Ken ignored the uncomfortable feeling of the duct tape on his upper lip as he forced his muscles to form a smile.

"Wait a sec, I didn't know you could ride the unicycle."

Sora appeared slightly impressed with her new discovery, as she seemed to have forgotten about his odd outfit. Ken's forced smile melted into a genuine one.

"I initially wanted to join the cast you know," Ken said as he toyed with the hat on his head. "I had to give up on it because of my heart condition but today is special."

Of course, riding the unicycle isn't likely to conflict with his heart condition, but even if he were asked to do something even more strenuous, for Sora, Ken would agree to it because Sora… is his dream.

Ken regarded the shocked and slightly curious Sora and smiled. Moving the unicycle aside, Ken elegantly took his cap off and motioned for Sora to take a seat.

"Now then, come on in!" Ken said politely as he closed his eyes. His balance became slightly awkward with his eyes closed but he couldn't ruin the image he wanted to present to Sora and with many years of practice, Ken managed to stay on the unicycle. He added extra warmth and energy in his voice as he continued. "Welcome to the special stage exclusively prepared for you!"

Opening his light blue eyes, Ken watched Sora's surprised reaction as all her friends burst out from underneath the stage to welcome her. Her surprised expression slowly melted into excitement, gratitude and joy as her friends expressed their concerns over her and presented their intent for the day. Ken felt his heart flutter as her deep chocolate colored eyes softened and a smile danced on her lips.

Taking her warm hand in his, Ken escorted Sora to a seat. She smiled warmly at him, and once again, Ken felt his heart flutter joyfully. As her soft hand left his, Ken slowly retreated. Though he had wanted to stay with Sora, he had his own act to prepare for, and he had already promised himself to make everything perfect for Sora.

He watched as Rosetta and Marion struggled to keep balance on the giant balls and once again felt pride bursting in his chest at all the effort that everyone had put forward for Sora. As the two younger performers lost their balance, Mia and Anna appeared by their sides, supporting them. The four performers smiled and laughed, as they set their poses. Ken closed his eyes as he embraced the warm feeling the stage emitted and tried to etch into his memory the feeling and happiness on everyone's faces. Ken gazed at Sora, wondering if she understood the unintentional underlying meaning of the first performance.

_All your friends will be their to support you if you should ever lose balance Sora --Mia, Anna, Rosetta, Marion, Sarah, and of course myself… we'll all be there for you. _

"Come on Ken," Sarah cried as she pulled Ken onto the stage.

Ken's eyes shot open upon feeling the forceful tug on his arm. He landed awkwardly on his bottom as Sarah dragged him onto the stage. This wasn't going according to his plan at all! Once again, he resisted the temptation to start sulking.

The blond tossed him a bowling pin, initiating their juggling act. Ken quickly caught on to the rhythm and once again, relying on the practice he had gone through when he was younger, easily caught and returned the pins. The young man slowly lost himself in the act as he felt himself fill up with joy. Closing his eyes, Ken remembered warm afternoons when his friends and sometimes neighbors would gather around his small handmade stage in his backyard to watch his newest performances. They would all cheer for him, praise him and encourage him to learn new tricks for his next performance.

Ken slowly opened his eyes as he gazed at Sora out of the corner of his eyes. Of course, his parents never approved. They wanted him to become something more… professional. They had rather see him studying math and science rather than learn how to juggle or do ride a unicycle. Every achievement, every triumph… was met with disappointment by his parents. One of the things about Sora was that she seemed so similar to him when they first met. She had told him that her parents didn't approve of her auditioning for the Kaleido Stage –that if she didn't get in this year, she wouldn't have the chance ever again. Starting that moment, Ken had wanted to support Sora and see her succeed in whatever she chose to do.

Ken returned his attention back to the performance. The young man slowly lost himself in the joy of being able to perform once again. His smile widened when he heard Sora laughing and cheering them on. All the years he hadn't been able to perform were made up for when Sora started clapping for him. Feeling truly happy, Ken energetically went through with the next act as he juggled hats with Jonathan.

Next was a trampoline act by Mia, Anna, Marion and Rosetta. Ken watched from the side as the four danced in the air like butterflies in the summer. He was slightly envious at watching them because he would never be able to perform like them. However he pushed the feeling aside as he leaned back to admire their performance.

Sora's laughter and applause filled the stage, lifting everyone's moods and enhancing the power and warmth that the stage radiated with. Ken gazed fondly at all his friends, realizing how much they had come to mean to him. It was as Sora had once said: They were all a family.

His gaze rested on Sora. Her eyes were different from this morning as she gazed up at the stage. Instead of the lost expression, her eyes reflected comfort, happiness, determination and spirit. Ken relaxed. The old Sora had finally returned.

Ken blushed. He was glad Sora had found her way. Sora was a strong girl. He knew that she would eventually come out of the darkness. He hoped that he would someday be able to be as strong as her. When that day happens, he hoped that he would be able to express his feelings to her.

Then again, she probably would misinterpret his intentions again. Ken furrowed his brow and revised his goal. He hoped that he would be able to _clearly_ express his feelings to her so that Sora would understand how he felt.

Ken smiled as his blue eyes rested on Sora. No matter what the future were to bring though, he would stick by her side, offering his support, advice and strength. He would help Sora become a true star… because she was his dream.


End file.
